Moving House

Minimizing Stress Of Moving Home

Moving house is often counted in the top three most stressful things you can do, but there are many things you can do to relieve the pressure.

Be prepared! It is never too soon to get organised for moving house. The best place to start is by having a good sort and clear out. Go through your home room by room and be ruthless which will save you time and money later on. Make a list of what you are keeping. This will be very useful for the packing process and the move itself.

If you choose to hire a professional removal company, choose a recommended company or one that adheres to a code of practice and is a member of an authoritative body such as the British Association of Removers (BAR) or the National Guild of Removers and Storers (NGRS). Check that they offer insurance and what will and won’t be covered. You need to be clear about timings, when they will arrive and how long can you expect them to take. Be honest with the removal company about the amount you have to move (use your list) that way you can be sure they will send an appropriately sized van and enough workers for the move to go smoothly.

The exchange of keys should be arranged for as early on the day of the move as possible, if not before, as it will be costly to have the removal van waiting around. It is frequently not until 2pm or later! You will need your solicitor to advise you on this.

Alongside your inventory, make a plan of your new property and decide what each room will be used for. You can then use this plan (at Cobb Amos we provide floorplans for all our properties) to co-ordinate your packing and label or colour code your boxes and furniture accordingly. Give a copy of the plan to the removal company. They can then make sure that the furniture and boxes destined for bedroom one are taken to bedroom one. Don’t forget to do the obvious things like wrap fragile items in bubble wrap or newspaper and spread the weight of heavy items over several boxes.

Pack a ‘basics’ box – It is very easy to forget the essentials when moving house but ensuring that you have a spare change of clothes, a wash bag and a charger for your phone can be very helpful. You want to avoid a situation where you have to search through boxes on the day you move in to find the basics.